Remedies for Depression

Posts Tagged ‘Depression Signs’

Relationships and Work Problems: Stress in general can contribute to depression. There are stresses involving work, maintaining a home, caring for children, financial, and sexual problems. As people get older there is the stress of dealing with elderly parents.  With jobs being shipped overseas, no one has a great sense of job security. Depression will tend to hit you the hardest if you are separated or divorced. This makes sense because there is always a sense of loss, of failure, even if you both agree that you will do better apart. You are dealing with change, and change always causes stress. Even positive changes cause stress. Staying married to a person who is toxic for you is never any good and can cause real depression problems. If you are married to someone and feel hurt, unloved, criticized, and not valued, you are bound to have a problem with self esteem. After all, if you are a good person, why should you be treated in such a bad way? Anger at your spouse can have a way of turning around and coming back into you, making you feel guilty, like there is something unlovable about you. If you are an unhappily married woman, you are very likely to suffer from depression. Having Children Women do have a lot of hormonal changes when they become pregnant. Hormonal changes affect the brain messengers so there is a possibility of depression involved. There is a real mix up of brain chemicals right after a baby is born and some women are more likely to have a very upsetting depression. It is called Postpartum Depression or many people call it the ‘baby blues’. Frequently if you have had a problem with depression prior to having a baby, you may be more likely to suffer from more depression after your baby is born. It is so scary to have depressive feelings when you are supposed to be totally joyful over a birth. Sometimes if you experience this you feel too guilty bring it up.  You need to understand that this is a hormonal imbalance and it is OK to get some help and possibly some medication to help you through this time.  Don’t feel awful. You love your baby but you need a little chemical adjustment. It is also true that you become exhausted taking care of a baby, not getting enough sleep. This is worse for single parents who have to handle all this alone. With people moving all over the country to get jobs, more couples are bringing up children without the support of relatives. Most couples really are not prepared for the big difference a baby will make in their lives. Men can feel very jealous about all the attention given to the new baby and be less supportive with the mother.  There is more stress if both parents have to work and arrange for child care.  The more that is demanded of you when you have the stress of nurturing a new family member, the more pressured, worried, and depressed you can feel.  Sexual desire and romantic moments tend to fly the coop when a baby has colic and demands constant attention. Having children starts a total change in your life. You have the children to take care of for at least 18 years. Plus these days with children returning home after they experience life problems, they can be with you well into your 60’s. The financial and economic costs of raising a child have risen unbelievably, let alone the emotional demands. Children are so pressured by what their peers have and make unrealistic demands on parents who can not afford to give them what they desire. Often you feel like you are giving everything you can to a child who then thumbs his nose at you and tells you that you aren’t making the grade. This can cause a great deal of depression. Family ties are so special and important but we all know they can be the source of great distress and problems

Those who suffer from signs of depression and related disorders may know the warning signs symptoms of depression all too well. They also know that these disorders tend to manifest themselves as repeated episodes of the depressive condition with the typical patient having many distinct episodes during their lives.
While not identical in every person, 10 signs of depression that may be experienced can include any of these:
1. Difficulty sleeping or other disruptions of sleep patterns
2. Overwhelming feelings of anxiety and/or sorrow at inappropriate times
3. Loss of interest in pastimes formerly enjoyed
4. A sensation of hopelessness, lack of self esteem and feelings of guilt
5. Fatigue and overall lower energy levels
6. Loss of appetite or abnormally large appetite, leading to weight loss or gain
7. Suicidal thoughts and recurring thoughts about death
8. Irritability, restlessness and short temper
9. Memory lapses and an inability to concentrate
10. Difficulty in maintaining close or romantic relationships
The warning signs symptoms of depression have increased in frequency in western industrialized societies, especially among those born after 1930. Some have concluded that pollution and its attendant harmful effects on the human body are to blame for some of the increase in depressive disorders and has ramped up the number of persons suffering from depression signs.
Experiencing one or more of the 10 signs of depression and other mood disorders has to do with levels of neurotransmitters, specifically dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine along with changes in the neural pathways of the brain. Imbalances between the neurotransmitters appear to be a cause of depression in many cases where depression signs are manifested.
Depression signs can derail careers and relationships, cause school work to go downhill and lower quality of life. The feelings of despair, sadness and frustration can make it impossible to function normally and relate to others. In many cases, depression goes undiagnosed due to the stigma borne by mental illness or failure of medical professionals to correctly diagnose or treat the problem.
Those who suffer from this condition often choose to self-medicate rather than go through the side effects of prescription medications. These people may use alcohol, caffeine or street drugs in an effort to feel better, which never works in the long run. Many of those who commit suicide happen to have symptoms of depression.
An additional problem faced by those suffering from depressive disorders is the stigma which is attached to the ailment. People who have depression signs are sometimes seen as crazy, unpredictable, even dangerous! In short, they are often avoided because of their disorder which only adds to their feelings of isolation and despair.
The stigma associated with depression signs can be devastating to those afflicted with depression. Teachers, co-workers, neighbors and employers will tend to treat them differently because of the disorder. It can be difficult to hide in many situations, for instance, when trying to get a new job. While it is not legal to ask a prospective employee about medical conditions they may have, one does not necessarily want to withhold the truth from an interviewer.
At the same time, it might be a long shot to actually land that job if your interviewer is aware of your depression. This is a case whether or not your depressive disorder would affect the quality of your work. In the case of students, teachers may treat them differently and the student could suffer from low expectations on the part of teachers.
There is also a lot of misinformation about persons with mental illness of any sort, with many making the assumption that all such persons are potentially violent and feared as a possible danger. Again, this leads people to isolate the sufferer, making their life even even worse.
Health insurance plans offered by employers often will involve higher premiums from the employer if a new hire has health problems, including depression signs. The employers fear is that their premiums will go through the roof if they are to take on a new employee with any sort of preexisting medical issues. This is true! Those who suffer from depression signs and disorders hardly get a fair shake from insurance companies.
The feelings of worthlessness and isolation that are felt by those who suffer from a depressive disorder are made worse by the stigma attached to the condition among the general public. This leaves the patient feeling even worse, their sensation of inadequacy and guilt compounded by the way that society treats them.
Society as a whole must learn to treat those with depression and other mental illnesses like the human beings that they really are. They are simply human beings with an illness, no different than a physical illness, merely different symptoms.

Always feeling under the weather? Always not in the mood to be around others and have a good time? If you’re suffering from prolonged sadness for quite some time now, you should face these bouts of depression and get yourself diagnosed by a psychiatrist, they’re doctors who can actually help you out with your problem. Depression or prolonged sadness is actually quite common in the United States, around 9.5 percent of the American population actually suffer from this illness, however, not all of them get to be treated, thus, depression and its ill-effects continue to be a burden to some individuals. This illness may seem quite simple to treat but in reality, it takes more than a little cheering up to actually cure depression. Constant visits to a cognitive behavior therapist is a must as well as taking all the prescribed medicines that the doctor will ask the patient to take - none of these exactly come cheap, but the amount of suffering that a person is going through because of depression is enough reason already for others to start taking notice and face depression head on. Depression oftentimes can easily get in the way of an individual’s daily activities and his or her’s normal functions, one’s zest for life can quickly and easily dissipate due to depression. And in place of an individual’s sunny disposition is more or less a person who hates his or herself, having no self-confidence, trying to isolate one’s self from the world and basically just not caring about living any more. More so, a person suffering from depression isn’t the only one who’s going to suffer from this destructive illness, his or her loved ones are sure to follow suit. By seeing the individual grow through such rough patches, basically not caring about anything or anyone anymore, it’s highly likely that not only will depression one’s relationship with one’s self but with his or her loved ones too. Fortunately depression can now be cured, especially when diagnosed early, depressed individuals can actually be treated through therapy and medication, although it may be a bit costly, a person’s good mental health is something that shouldn’t be scrimped on. Cognitive behavioral talk or interpersonal talk are just some of the available psychosocial treatments that cognitive behavior therapists can offer to their patients, both actually prove to be able to produce fruitful and positive results. Still, people tend to not recognize depression even it’s right before their eyes, being honest with one’s self is key to being able to cure such an illness. Never overlook the various symptoms, depressed individuals oftentimes exhibit uncharacteristic behaviors such as suddenly lacking interest in one’s hobbies (or other stuff that he or she usually enjoys), sleeps too much or actually aren’t able to get some shut-eye, suddenly becoming anti-social, talks a lot about death or being a worthless person. There are actually a lot more other symptoms but in case these already fit in your category or of someone that you know of, go to a reputable psychiatrist at once in order to see if the depression is still at an early stage or not. From here you’ll be able to assess how the treatments will actually go. Depression shouldn’t be something that people fear of, instead, people should just start taking charge of their lives and actually face this illness and fight it. Life is too beautiful a gift to waste and if one will spend the majority of his or her life just moping around about every single little thing then what kind of life would that be? Depression may not kill one’s body but it’ll certainly kills one’s spirit if you’ll let it. Don’t be a victim.

Some types of depression run in families, suggesting that a tendency to be depressed can be inherited.  That is, if there is someone in your immediate family, parents, siblings, aunts, and uncles, you may be more likely to suffer from depression. This is truer with manic depressive illness. However, don’t think that just because you have an inherited tendency towards depression that you are doomed to experience it. There are many other factors which would play a part. Stress in your life at home, work, or even in working towards educational goals can be a trigger to start depression. If you have low self-esteem, are pessimistic by nature, and are easily overwhelmed by stress, you are a candidate for depression. An ended relationship, financial setbacks, or a difficult relationship or situation can trigger a depression.  Often, an event seems to start off a depression, such as a serious loss, chronic illness, problems with a relationship or divorce, financial problems, or a disruption in your life due to circumstances beyond your control. People who get depressed are not sociopaths or psychotics. You get depressed because you are very concerned about your behavior or what you think are your wrong doings.  When you get depressed you tend to be thinking of many things you should have done, could have done, or might have done. True evil people do not get depressed because they have no concern about how they may have hurt others. Over the past twenty years it has been accepted that depression is a result of a chemical imbalance in your brain. It is not your fault. Your brain simply isn’t sending the right signals and your body gets confused. The messenger isn’t getting the message to the right place. This has a lot to do with why you have sleep problems with depression. Certain illnesses can have a very big effect on the brain workings and the same is true as to medications people must take for illnesses. There is a article to follow on illness and depression. If you tend to be a lonely person with low self-esteem, feel you have little control over your life, and worry excessively; you are more likely to develop depression. Because you already are feeling like you are just struggling to get along, if some big disappointment or crisis comes along, you will have a more strong reaction to it and perhaps start to fall apart inside. It is true that negative thinking usually develops in your childhood or adolescence. If you feel a lack of being approved and praised as a child, if you feel you never got a chance to be special in some way, you are more likely to be rocked out of your socks when the big trials of life smack you in the head.

Women Are At Greater Risk For Depression Than Men Major and chronic depression affect twice as many women as men, so the statistics say. They do not mention that women go for treatment with less of a feeling of stigma than men. Men think they are weak when they admit depression.  Women accept it as a consequence of things gone wrong in their lives. There is no doubt that hormonal changes a woman experiences can be a reason why she might be more prone to depression. Hormones do have a role to play in the messages sent to the brain. Here’s an interesting piece of information. Family doctors are more than twice as likely to suggest that a woman is depressed than a man with the same symptoms. Being a Victim and Being Depressed: Children who are molested are more likely to become depressed. There is a much higher incidence of depression among individuals who have been raped, assaulted, and stalked. People who are harassed or abused on the job have higher rates of depression. Any kind of abuse can cause low self esteem, a feeling of having no control of your life, blaming yourself, and feeling alone and unable to tell anyone. If you grow up in a dysfunctional family which does not support and love you for just being you, you are much more likely to get depressed. Poverty Breeds Depression Especially now in our time of media telling us all what we should have, poor people tend to feel more depressed.  Women and children make up 75% of the people who are poor. Poor people have less access to resources to get the help they need. Low incomes tend to go along with sadness and low morale.  These are things in your environment many times you cannot control. Combine this with coming from a dysfunctional family and you have a recipe for disaster, creating anti social people who have a grudge and need to make their anger known. This can cause terrible consequences for all of us. Old Age Can Bring Depression: Anyone who tells you the golden years are the best could get a good argument from a lot of people over 50 I know.  So many things are happening at this age. Parents are dying, children are leaving home (hopefully), illnesses are starting, and as you retire, things are changing.  The death of a life partner can be a terrible end to a relationship which has lasted for years. Our society places so much value on youth that we send the message that if you are old, you aren’t much. Many times older people will congregate with each other so they feel comfortable. They limit contact with younger people and many times that it not good. So there are many factors and life situations that seem to enter in along with your depression. I pers onally believe that the most important thing to do is to get treatment going and then try to solve the problem which triggered the depression.  If you are so depressed you cannot think or solve any problems, you can’t be expected to make it out of the pit.

Interpersonal Therapy: This therapy deals with how you relate to other people in your life.  It focuses on how you communicate and express you feelings. Your social skills are seen at the key to understanding why you are having trouble in your life. You need to learn how to become more self assertive and positive, making eye contact, and rehearsing what you will say or do in a situation. This can be very practical for you to learn better communication skills. But for many people this is not enough. I saw so many couples who were never going to be able to have good relationships. They were different to the core and neither of them could really change. I was never one to prescribe divorce but when I would sit week after week with two people who obviously were destroying each other, I knew they were destined to fail in the relationship. Anti Depressant Therapy: There is never anything to be ashamed of in taking anti depressant medication.  Anyone you know may be taking it someday, including you.  We are so lucky that there are now anti depressants with fewer side effects. We can take them and get fast treatment for depression. Taking the right anti depressant can change your life, and change it for the better. I have talked to so many people who have told me that they had no idea how bad off they were until they started taking anti depressants. If you combine anti depressants with talk therapy, you may get the most benefit of all. We have learned that depression is triggered by a chemical imbalance in your brain. Just like an antihistamine can stop your sneezing, anti depressants can stop your depression. They can help you to function and get your life moving again.  They can lift those heavy clouds off your shoulders and let you see the light. How long you take the medication is up to you. The biggest challenge is to find out what dose works for you.  Too many people give up after the first few weeks saying that the side effects were awful and they never go back to the doctor It is very important when an anti depressant is prescribed for you or you order it over the internet that you know plenty about this medication. You need to know what its side effects can be. I encourage people do their own research regarding any medication they use. Find out: -What is it supposed to do? -When and how do I take it? -What other medicines should I avoid while taking this? -What food or drinks should I avoid? -Can I use alcohol with this? -What are the side effects? -When will it start to work? -How long will I be on it? Take it on yourself to: -Ask any question you feel is important. -Tell your doctor about your fears of taking the medicine. -Let your doctor know if you stop taking your medicine. -Let your doctor know about any bad side effects. -Demand a different anti depressant if yours is not helping. -Ask yourself how you can deal with your problems. Think about how you can find new ways of handling the problems you have. The medicine gives you more ability to think clearly. One of the most important things you need to know is that it is quite possible that the first one or two anti depressants you try will not suit you.  Every person’s system is different and there is no magic one to fit all. Don’t let yourself get discouraged and just stop taking your pills without trying others. So many people do exactly that and don’t you be one of those people. Push on and get what you need.  You are important. You are suffering. You deserve help and deserve to get better. Take the time to find the right anti depressant for you, then stay on it for as long as you need it.

Anxiety and Depression - Recognizing the Signs
Understanding the symptoms and signs of both depression and anxiety is a vital first step in treating these mental conditions. Treatment of depression and anxiety is not possible until the problem is recognized, and considering the impact either condition can have on a person’s life, seeing that there is a problem is absolutely vital.
The Signs of Anxiety
Anxiety can manifest itself in many different ways. From a general feeling of anxiety, to phobias about specific things, the anxiety trigger can vary widely. But the symptoms tend to be similar across all cases, and can unclude:
Feelings very similar to a heart attack. Palpitations, racing heartbeat, chest pains, and trouble breathing are all possible. The symptoms of an anxiety attack can be remarkably like that of having a heart attack.
Cold sweats
Difficulties sleeping
Sudden feelings of doom, fear, or impending death
Stomach and bowel problems
In particularly severe cases, the sufferer may experience what is called a panic attack. This is an incredibly scary experience for the person having from it, especially if the person lives alone. This leads to the sufferer going to incredible lengths to avoid anything they think may trigger a panic attack. Almost anything can be a trigger, including the fear of having another panic attack! But in the end, it all generally leads to the same end result - isolation. Isolation from people, from experiences, and the outside world. This sense of isolation and fear tends to lead to - you guessed it - depression.
The Signs of Depression
While everyone feels “down” or “blue” every now and then, true depression is orders of magnitude worse. Nothing seems right, nothing gives any hope to the sufferer. Depression can lead to suicide, homicide, drug abuse, and other anti-social behavior. Knowing the signs of depression are is very important, especially in the presence of other mental conditions like anxiety. Some of the more common symptoms of depression are:
Loss of interest in hobbies, recreational activities, and other activities that used to give enjoyment.
Feelings of sadness that last for more than a week or two
Hopelessness and guilt without reason
Suicidal thoughts or actions, a desire to die
Changing eating habits, either increased or decreased
A desire for isolation, solitude, or just to be “left alone” by people formerly important to the sufferer
Anxiety and Depression Treatment
Anxiety and depression both are very real and serious mental illnesses. Fortunately, anxiety and depression should be able to be effectively treated - but only if the symptoms and signs are both recognized and acted on. Counseling, medication, and psychotherapy can all help the sufferer get out of the vicious synergy between anxiety and depression and get their life back on track. Attempting to work through it by yourself, especially if suffering from the duo of depression and anxiety, is not recommended. Being alone and isolated with these illnesses is half the problem!

This book is for the ‘Average Joe’ in this country who likes information given in an understandable way. You want it kept simple and you don’t need to read about all the technical stuff behind the subject. Depression happens to the average Joe all the time and most of us who have it don’t get treated for it. That’s a shame because depression is one of the most treatable diseases. I hope that if you understand it and know that it isn’t something to hide, cover up, or ignore, your can have the power to beat it. At the very least, 30% of the American population suffer from a depression.  The economic cost is out of sight but the cost in suffering for those who are depressed can never really be counted. Depression can not only destroy persons suffering with it, but everyone around them who cares about them. A serious major depression can ruin a family if left untreated. This is really bad news! The good news is that there is quick treatment and relief available for depression sufferers.   However, the majority of people who get depressed do not get treated. We have now learned that depression is mostly due to a chemical imbalance or mix-up in the brain. These mix-ups can be treated with medications. The medications available now can help you save your life or that of someone you love. Depression is treatable, just like high blood pressure, diabetes, and an ulcer.  It is simply a matter of reaching out for help, getting the right medication, and following directions.  Think of this as like having a car that goes on the blink. You wouldn’t ignore trouble signs like an engine light flashing and think you could just keep on driving. You would investigate what was going on, get someone with training to check out your car, and fix whatever went wrong.  Same thing applies if you develop a temperature over 102, are dripping with sweat, and become weaker and weaker. You know something has to be done, and done quickly.  It is exactly the same when you experience depression.  Something is terribly wrong and you must act. I used to tell my new clients to think of themselves coming in to see me for a tune up, not a major overhaul. You won’t need the big overhaul if you take action quickly. How do you know if you have depression?  There are some things that really stand out which can help you decide if a depression is going on.  It involves your mood, your thoughts, your appetite, your sleep, and your feelings of self esteem. It is not just the blahs or the blues. Everybody has a few days or more when they feel down and sad. This is different.  It’s not like the normal experience of sadness you have when things go wrong or when you are disappointed and hurt.  This is an emotional pit you’ve fallen into which affects your family, your job, and your whole life. It’s a horrible feeling of hopelessness, of failure, of knowing that there is no way to make things better. You actually do ‘drag’ yourself along, going through the motions at home and work, thinking that you would rather hide in a cave and avoid everyone.  If you are depressed you cannot just ‘get it together’, put a smiley face on, square your shoulders, and get a stiff upper lip. No matter how hard you try to lift yourself up, you can’t. And it tends to get worse, not better.  If you don’t get treatment, this can last for months or even years. Why put yourself through something this awful when the right medication can get you back on track, able to feel better quickly? There are some facts that will help you agree that it is good to know about depression, understand the symptoms, and get the treatment which will help. Depression is not something that you have made up in your head. It’s feeling “down” and “low” and “hopeless” for months at a time. Depression can affect people at any age, of any race, any ethnic, or any economic group. It doesn’t just happen to soft people and is truly an equal opportunity illness. It is not a form of weakness but is a serious health problem, like any other illness. It is not something which should be hidden or anything to be embarrassed about. The names of famous people who have suffered from depression like David Letterman, Mike Wallace, Terry Bradshaw, Wynona Ryder, Delta Burke, Tipper Gore, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and so many more tell us that celebrities who seem to have all the breaks have suffered with depression. Depression is a thief. It comes into your life, steals your energy and self esteem, and whispers to you that you are worthless. It shoves you down deeper into the bottom of the pit where no angels want to go. It can drive you to actually think about suicide, getting it over with, and ending the agony which has made your life pure hell. This book is intended to help you understand depression by giving you information that you will be able to understand. You will not have to have a Ph.D. to get through these chapters and by the time you have finished, you will know a lot.  After reading this paragraph you won’t have to think about ‘genetic implications’ or such things as ‘human leukocyte antigen’. You may even surprise yourself with how much you have learned about depression and how to deal with it. I hope you will feel comfortable reading and rereading chapters that seem to have real meaning for you. You are the reason this book has been written.

Tom Cruise and Brooke Shields are currently engaging in a word war against each other because of a type of depression, called postpartum depression. Cruise’s and Brooke’s debacle started when Tom Cruise openly disapproved of Brooke Shield’s personal choice of opting to take prescribed medicines to cure her postpartum depression, when he guested at the Today Show. According to Cruise, who is a popular devotee of Scientology (who believes that we can be cured through natural means and that taking medicine is doing our body harm), Brooke Shields should have instead, opted to cure her postpartum depression by doing healthy exercises. Adding that a lot of people have been misinformed about depression and how to actually cure this common illness. But what is postpartum depression really? We’ve heard about it often enough, yet are we really sure that we know enough about it for us to actually understand this illness in order for us to help ourselves as well as others? Being pregnant should really be a source of joy for everyone, especially the mother to be, who for nine months, will actually have living being grow from inside of her. Unfortunately, there is another side to this joyous occasion, being pregnant means that you and your body will have to get used to some adjustments for you to have a safe pregnancy. Smoking, alcohol, strenuous activities as well as stress should be avoided at all cost. A healthy baby means having a healthy mother as well. But given that you have been able to successfully avoided all these bad habits for your baby to be, childbirth is a whole different thing, as much as we may try to avoid it, there are still some unfortunate cases wherein the mother’s as well as the baby’s life might be in danger. But there’s actually more, postpartum depression actually happens after childbirth. Although it’s quite common and a lot of women have learned to how to deal with it as well as successfully treat it (like Brooke Shields), it is still quite avoidable. Postpartum depression is actually a lot like depression, but only new moms are the possible victims of this illness. There are actually a lot possible reasons why postpartum depression occurs: Childbirth as we all know is not as easy as pie, actual physical stress from giving birth is one of the main reasons why postpartum depression occurs. Next postpartum depression trigger is massive changes is hormonal levels. A lot of moms-to-be who were hesitant about bearing a child are also more susceptible to postpartum depression, those who are not ready to be a mother yet are more easily to get depressed as opposed to happy and excited moms-to-be. When postpartum depression happens, it really is best to go to the doctor immediately. Aside from obviously having ill-effects for the new mother, postpartum depression can prove to be harmful to the child as well. New mothers who are suffering from postpartum depression may be harboring ill feelings toward their children. Their are actually some cases of murder wherein postpartum depression has been cited as the reason. Mothers who suffer from postpartum depression may blame their child for their weight gain, thus feeling like they’ve become less attractive and unloved. It is really best to consult a reputable cognitive behavior therapist to take care of your postpartum woes, your therapist may prescribe medications to help cure postpartum depression as well as therapy sessions to help relieve whatever pent emotions that you may have.

Suffering A Stroke And Feeling Hopeless Getting severely depressed after having a stroke is not unusual. When my mother had her first massive stroke and I went to the hospital, tears were flowing down her face and she kept telling me, ‘I don’t want to live’. My mother was always a very proud, independent woman.  She did not want to depend on anyone. She was depressed and very angry.  Nurses did not want to come into her room because she would not play the game and act grateful because she was unhappy. No one discussed depression with me, not her doctor, not her neurologist.  But I knew how bad it was. The depression had to be treated if my mother would ever get rehabilitated. People who have a stroke need very much attention and love. They feel helpless and hopeless.  Recently a neighbor of mine had a stroke and when I went to the hospital, she too was crying and so sad. She is a widow who prides herself on being independent at age 86. The problem with her situation is that she was depressed for at least a year prior to the stroke since her husband had died. When the stroke hit her it was double trouble. Treatment for depression can shorten the rehab process, lead to quicker recovery, and save health care costs.  It makes so much sense that it’s hard to believe that doctors don’t seem interested in explaining this to family members right up front. Depression is something that stroke victims deal with a large majority of the time. Even though stroke is a disease of the brain, it can affect the entire body. Some of the disabilities that can result from a stroke include paralysis, thinking problems, speech problems, emotional difficulties, fatigue, and daily living problems. Many people require psychological help after a stroke. Depression, anxiety, frustration and anger are common in stroke victims. It depends on the person and what his or her life has been like so far. If you know someone who has had a stroke, you know recovery is a slow and long lasting process. If you or your loved one has a stroke, be prepared for damage to that person’s self image and self esteem.  It is very common for stroke victims to feel they have no future.  Make sure that anti depressants are part of the program for anyone you care about who has a stroke. Insist that the doctor find the right combination of meds. Maybe it will take some time but you and your loved ones are worth it. Depression can be treated in addition to whatever other illnesses a person might have, including stroke. If you think you may be depressed or know someone who is, don’t lose hope. Seek help Depression and Parkinson’s Disease It is very sad to know that at least half the people with this disease experience depression. First they are the victim of one horrible disease, and then they suffer from depression. The person who has it, their families, friends, and doctors so often misinterpret the warning signs of depression and just think it is part of the other disease.  Men in particular do not want to say that they are depressed as a result of this illness. Symptoms of these two illnesses tend to overlap each other. Not enough research has been done on relationship between these two illnesses. People with depression who have Parkinson’s disease have a different symptom group than those without Parkinson’s. The Parkinson’s profile includes higher rates of anxiety and sadness without guilt or self-blame. Parkinson’s disease is a chronic and progressive disorder of the brain. It affects the motor system, but also thinking and emotion. It results from the loss of brain cells that control movement. The four primary symptoms of Parkinson’s are:  trembling in hands, arms, legs, jaw, and face; stiffness of arms and legs, slowness of movement, and poor balance and coordination. Plus it causes difficulty walking and talking. Anything which can help these victims and lift their sprits is needed ASAP. Antidepressants can be extremely helpful for anyone dealing with Parkinson’s. Treating depression can help anyone feel better about and cope better with their illness.  Doctors of Parkinson’s patients need to devote the time and energy to finding the right prescription and right dosage. Be sure you insist that the doctor is “on it” and the help is given. As usual, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Don’t hesitate to demand the care you need. Depression can and should be treated when it co-occurs with other illnesses. Untreated depression can delay recovery from it or worsen the outcome. If you or someone you love has Parkinson’s disease, don’t give up and don’t lose hope. Depression is a treatable disorder of the brain. Depression can be treated in addition to Parkinson’s. Get the help you need, even if you have to demand it.